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New Braunfels Herald Zeitung (Newspaper) - May 11, 2011, New Braunfels, Texas
Grand Opening Thursday may 12
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say in the matter — and that an ordinance that doesn't require a special-use permit "removes from the people and their representatives the ability to have a say in what’s going on in neighborhoods."
l^ee Edwards, a spokesman for New Braunfels/Canyon I^ike Association of Realtors, said the group would "remove all support" of the rewritten ordinance if council were to strike the proposal to allow development of short-term rentals in commercial /.ones without an SUR
Indeed, the association has withdrawn its complete support for the entire ordinance, Edwards said Tuesday.
One resident complained late Monday that he spent $300,000 on a commercial lot because a special-use permit wasn't required to develop it as a short-term rental. To require him to get one now would be “immoral," he told council.
His comment was in response to Krueger's statement that it is immoral for
short-term rental developers to target older neighborhoods like her own Comal Town for financial gain.
She said real-estate interests have a map of Comal Town which shows their intent to transition the old residential neighborhood near Schlitterbahn into a commercial zone. “These are not just parcels of property ripe for commercial development, but established, heartfelt homes," said Krueger.
Krueger, who is leaving the council after the May 14 election, said she came in fighting for Comal Town and other neighborhoods and will go out doing the same thing.
Others spoke in favor of the SUP requirement.
The project, which is estimated to cost $5.5 million, is scheduled to begin at the end of July and be completed in summer 2012.
Yantis was the primary contractor for the almost-complete South Tributary Flood Control Project.
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development in the C-2 and C-2A commercial zones without requiring developers to first obtain special-use permits.
Councilors Kathleen Krueger and Richard Zapata balked at that idea, saying that dropping the requirement for a special-use permit from the ordinance would — given the city’s hfKlgepodge of zoning mixes allow short-term rental development in neighborhoods without neighbors and council having a say.
Mattingly pointed out such a scenario. The owner of a lot zoned commercial 011 historic Mill Street is making inquiries about developing a short-term rental. Because the lot is zoned commercial, there is no requirement for the developer to obtain a special-use permit.
Krueger argued that special-use permits allow neighbors and council to have a
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grants — has run out, both financially strapped districts are entitled to Ed Jobs funding.
Allocation amounts were based on each district’s weighted average daily attendance (WADA). According to figures released Monday by the Texas Education Agency, Comal ISO should receive a grant of $2,644,860, while New Braunfels ISD’s take is estimated at $1,211,123.
Now it’s only a matter of receiving those funds, which were part of a federal jobs bill and the subject of a nine-month battle between Gov. Rick Perry and Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Austin). Perry wanted no designation attached to accepting the relief, while Doggett insisted it specifically go toward hiring and retaining public school teachers.
Doggett filed an amendment, which was only recently repealed by Congress. Perry then said he would make the money available to school districts.
Comal ISD Superintendent Marc Walker, however, doubts the money will be available.
“We’re still unsure of whether or not the federal funds are supplementing or supplanting the state funds,” Walker said. “For example, the Senate bill includes the federal funds as part of its revenue scenario but the House bill does not.”
New Braunfels ISD superintendent Randy Moczygemba — whose district is looking at an $8.4 million deficit — was unavailable for comment on Tliesday. Moczygemba said two weeks ago that there’s no guarantee the money will specifically go to aid school district budgets.
They can take that money and supplant it in their revenue for school districts, which means we may not get any additional revenue," he said.
Drainage revision
As part of the city’s revamp of its drainage regulations following the June 9,2010 flood, council also approved a change to the city’s drainage criteria manual.
Under the change, developers will be required to design drainage structures that would keep peak flows of runoff from their sites at pre-development levels for two-, 10-, 25- and 100-year storms.
Current standards require developers keep peak flows from runoff at pre-development levels for 10 and 100-year storms.
North Trib project
Council Monday also approved a contract with Yantis Co. of San Antonio for the construction of the North Tributary Flood Control Project, which will reduce flooding in the Walnut Ave./Old McQueeney Road area just south of 1-35.
Other action
Council also:OBAMA
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on his promise to prioritize immigration legislation during his first year in office.
T am asking you to add your voices to this,” Obama said in El Paso. “We need Washington to know that there is a movement for reform gathering strength from coast to coast. That’s how we’ll get this done.” Countering Republican calls to focus on border security before moving to a comprehensive overhaul, Obama boasted of increasing border patrol agents, nearing completion of a border fence, and screening more cargo, among other steps.
“We have gone above and beyond what was requested by the very Republicans who said they supported broader reform as long as we got serious about enforcement,” Obama said. “But even though we’ve answered these concerns, I gotta say I suspect there are still going to be some who are trying to move the goal posts on us one more time.”
“Maybe they'll need a moat," he said derisively to laughter from the crowd. “Maybe they’ll want alligators in the moat.”
“T he question is whether those in Congress who previously walked away in the name of enforcement are now ready to come back to the table and finish the work we’ve started," he said.
Obama also tailored his argument to the times, making his case for immigration
reform in newly sharpened economic terms. He said that the middle class would ben-efit from bringing illegal immigrants out of an underground economy and drawing on the abilities of immigrants educated in American universities. Obama also noted that it’s not just Latinos who want an immigration remake, but also police chiefs, business owners, educators and others.
His speech broke no new policy ground, though, and he declined to offer a bill or call on Congress to send him one by a particular deadline — a bow to political realities on Capitol Hill. Republicans who control the House are hostile to overhaul legislation.
And as if to underscore how faindy his call for immigration reform would resonate in Congress, two key border state Republicans immediately shot back with a statement demanding to know: “President Obama speaks about our broken immigration system; but what about our broken borders?" The statement was from Republican Sens. Jon Kyi and John McCain of Arizona, the latter Obama’s 2008 presidential opponent and a one-time supporter of comprehensive overhaul legislation.
Obama’s personal pitch was the latest step in a visible campaign to build support and pressure on Republicans to act.
He went so far as to encourage people to sign up to help him at the White House website.
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pus) principals about that on Thursday,” Walker said.
Walker said the district has recalculated its fund balance to $58.1 million, up slightly over previous estimates. He said he will apply some of the new-found surplus to next year’s budget, raising the commitment from $5.8 million to $6 million.
Legislators have until May 30 to come up with a funding formula or face a special session this summer. Walker said he believes it will be the latter, and doubts Comal ISD will have a firm idea about its expected revenue by the time it has to complete its budget Aug. 31.
Based 011 a projected compromise between the Senate and House funding bills, Walker said he expects the district next year to lose between $14.2 million and $15.9 million in the first version, and between $21.6 million and $29.1 million in the second.
Walker has penciled in using $7 million of the fund balance for 2012-13, but indicated he isn’t making a firm
NO BAIL FOR MAN IN ATTEMPTED COCKPIT ENTRY
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) —
A Yemen native who disrupted a San Francisco-bound flight was portrayed by prosecutors Tliesday as a dangerous and erratic passenger who tried to barge into the cockpit twice, did not carry any luggage and yelled "God is great" in Arabic.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Elise Becker said Rageh Al-Murisi, 28, was carrying several valid and expired forms of identification from New York and California, $47 in cash and two postdated checks totaling $13,000 in his wallet. One check was made out to himself, she said, but did not specify where the other was from.
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